By Subhankar Mondal

Jose Luis Oltra has been sacked as the coach of struggling La Liga side Almeria after they went down comprehensively to Athletic Bilbao at home on Monday evening…

Almeria have relieved coach Jose Luis Oltra of his duties following the 3-1 home defeat to Athletic Bilbao on Monday evening.

The Andalucian side slipped to the foot of the table on Sunday after Hercules’ surprise 3-1 victory over Real Sociedad and remained there after failing to get a positive result against the Basque giants the next day.

Almeria’s sporting director Alberto Benito confirmed the sacking on Tuesday morning and the club released an official statement on their website.

"The Valencian coach is no longer manager of the Rojiblancos,” read the statement. “Sporting director Alberto Benito communicated this to him at the beginning of the afternoon, once the morning training session was over.

"The club took this decision in the understanding that a change is needed in the team dynamic as there are still chances to achieve safety, which at the moment is four points away. Jose Luis Oltra, who UD Almeria thank for his work and professionalism, will bid farewell to the squad on Wednesday morning."

Oltra took over the coaching responsibilities at Almeria in November replacing Juan Manuel Lillo but the team only picked up four wins and 17 points in 18 league matches.

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